Woman shot, killed by police in Santa Ana

The shooting happened shortly before 8 a.m. in the alley lined with apartment complexes in the 800 block of South Townsend Street, when two officers on patrol confronted the woman, Santa Ana police Cpl. Anthony Bertagna said.

Details of why the officers confronted the woman were unknown, Bertagna said.

The woman, who has not been identified, was taken to UCI Medical Center, where she died.

"There is a handgun in the alley," Bertagna said, adding that it does not belong to the police officers. "I don't know if she shot or not."

Many residents in the area said they were sleeping when the shooting occurred and believed the gunshots were fireworks.

"We didn't see anything. We were sleeping," Maria Ponce said in Spanish as she stood on the balcony of her second-story apartment.

As of 3 p.m., crime scene tape blocked off the alley between two rows of apartment complexes as crime scene investigators processed the scene.

No officers were injured.

The Orange County District Attorney's Office will investigate the death, as is customary with officer-involved shootings.